Magnitude 5.3 earthquake rocks Japan's Fukushima prefecture

The epicentre of the earthquake was 22 kilometres (14 miles) below the ground, according to the US Geological Survey. It struck 20 kilometres west of the city of Iwaki, bordering the Pacific Ocean, at 02.25 am (1725 GMT).

The epicentre was also about 50 kilometres southwest of the damaged Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, which was crippled by the major quake and tsunami in March, 2011.

The Japan Meteorological Agency, which put the quake at magnitude 5.8, said no tsunami warning had been issued.

Twitter users claimed the quake was felt in the capital of Tokyo, 175 kilometres away.

It came just hours after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe toured the nuclear plant on Thursday, ordering its operator Tokyo Electric Power to fix radioactive water leaks there.